How to format usb to fat32 or fat16 as no fat32 option for formatting?

Use the right tool for bigger drives, back up first, pick the correct file system, double-check the drive, and safely eject when done. That way, you avoid most headaches! By the way, Windows' built-in formatter (like through File Explorer) won’t let you format drives bigger than 32GB to FAT32. If your USB is over that size, it’ll give you an error. So, you’ll need a third-party tool like GUIFormat to get around this.

FAT32 is good for compatibility (works on pretty much everything — old game consoles, cameras, etc.), but it has a 4GB file size limit. If you need to store bigger files, NTFS or exFAT are better options. So, don’t just format blindly; pick the right file system. It’s a good idea to run a quick check on the drive (via chkdsk) before formatting USB to FAT32. It helps catch bad sectors or errors that could cause issues later.

Double-check what drive you’re formatting! Accidentally pick your internal drive or another USB. That’s a disaster. Always verify the drive letter and size before confirming. Sometimes, drives are set up with GPT or MBR partition styles. FAT32 works best with MBR. If your drive is GPT, you might need to convert it or use tools that support formatting GPT drives to FAT32. After formatting USB to FAT32, always eject the drive properly to avoid corruption. Just right-click and choose “Eject” or use the Safely Remove Hardware icon.